Q/A: Brian Hardgroove

Posted by Sam Podio in A4PSC

Brian Hardgroove, director of A4PSC

Brian Hardgroove, member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame hip hop group Public Enemy and SFUAD artist in residence, is the new director of Artists for Positive Social Change at SFUAD. This year marks the third annual Artists for Positive Social Change concert and Hardgroove has chosen the band Living Colour to perform April 19. He spoke to Jackalope about the program and this year’s event.

Jackalope Magazine: Can you explain what Artists for Positive Social Change is?

Brian Hardgroove: The project was started two years ago by the former chair of the photography department, David Scheinbaum. David is a big fan of music, but for the last 12 years, he was a huge fan of hip hop and he had a number of photos from Public Enemy concerts. When I moved here, he introduced himself and when he wanted to start Artists for Positive Social Change, he asked me if I could bring Public Enemy and I did so they decided to do it annually. A simple description of the program is: the school reaching out to artists in various disciplines whose drive for their art has a social or political leaning to it that looks to improve our lot as a species. That’s my description of it, David might use some different words, but basically that’s how I understood it. When David left the school, it was given to me to take on.

JM: Why did you want to become involved in A4PSC?

BH: Because it represented why I got into music to begin with. I got into music for social change. As a kid, I didn’t realize it and maybe that term wasn’t popular then, but I wanted to help people. So his [David] vision was just a reflection of why I do music.

JM: Do you think A4PSC has been a good influence on the students here?

BH: Yeah, I believe it has been and I believe it’s been a challenge, too. I believe it’s been a challenge for some of the students to ask themselves ‘why am I doing this?’. It’s certainly not a requirement to even care about other people to be an artist, but given the influence that we have as artists, it is good to realize that you have an impact. So I think that has been a nice knock on the door for a lot of students.

JM: How do you choose which artists you bring to campus?

BH: If their art reflects that vision. This year, I sent out a survey to the students to see who they would want to bring, hoping there would be an act in there that students could learn from. There was one act that showed up a couple times and that was Queens of the Stone Age. So I went down to see them and they agreed to come. What I didn’t feel from them was any urgency at all to sit and talk with the students. So that may be who the students want to see, but if that band doesn’t care to share what these students need to know, I don’t have an interest in bringing them. What got me off the hook was that technically, their show was so large that we couldn’t hang it anywhere on campus. When I spoke with Living Colour, they said ‘yes, we’ll be in the classrooms’. They want to share their information.

JM: Can you talk about Living Colour?

BH: A very interesting thing to note is that they achieved success that was almost impossible to achieve for a non-white band. They were a heavy rock band and it was impossible for non-white acts to get signed doing that in America. It took a lot for them to get Columbia to acquiesce and it took Mick Jagger’s help, too. So the story of their perseverance is quite the tale and then they became the darlings of MTV for a couple of years. So that’s really one of the most interesting things about them. Part of the social change for us was them proving to the industry that they needed to stop listening to music with their eyes. It was just a real bad time and they really smashed that door.

JM: Why should students go to the Living Colour concert?

BH: To hear that story. To hear a band whose message should be of concern to them, especially by the time they leave the gates of the university. By the time they leave here, they need to get as much exposure to people who might help them in their quest. All of the students will benefit from being at the symposium that they’re doing in the morning and watching the show is entertainment so if you don’t like music very loud, then don’t go. But they are people who have accomplished what everyone here is trying to accomplish so they should always take advantage of being in the company of people like that.

JM: What is going to happen in the symposium?

BH: They’re going to talk about their early days, their journey and really field questions from the students.

JM: What is the show going to be like?

BH: There are going to be two student bands. The first is Ruder and the Shockwaves- a very good jazz/rock band. And then Venus and the Lion who is a band who, in my opinion, is ready to be put in the deep end of the pool. I mean, they’re that good. Then Living Colour will start at 8p.m. for a 90 minute show.

Living Colour will hold a symposium on April 19 at 10 a.m in The Forum. The event is free with an SFUAD ID.

The concert will be held on April 19 at the Shellaberger Tennis Center. Tickets are required for the concert and the doors will open at 5 p.m. Student band, Ruder and the Shockwaves, will open at 6 .m. with Venus and Lion to follow at 6:45 p.m.. Living Colour will take the stage at 8p.m.